If you answer “yes” to one or more of these, you should schedule an appointment as soon as possible. The sooner you seek treatment for hearing loss, the more of your remaining hearing can be protected.

• Do you frequently ask people to repeat themselves?
• When in a group, do you find it difficult to keep up with the conversation?
• Do you often complain about others mumbling or not speaking clearly?
• Do you have difficulty understanding what someone else is saying when you are in a crowded place (restaurant, store, office, etc.)?
• Are children or women with high voices particularly difficult to understand?
• Do others complain that you have the volume of your TV or radio turned up way too high?
• Are you sometimes embarrassed to find you’ve responded inappropriately to what someone else has said?
• Do you hear a ringing in your ears when there is no apparent outside source?
• Do you find it harder to understand people when you are not face-to-face with them?
• Do you find yourself concentrating extra hard when talking to someone on the telephone?
• At the end of the day, are you exhausted after having done nothing but talk or listen to others?
• Do you find yourself avoiding going out with friends or attending family gatherings more than you used to?
• Do/did your parents or other close relatives suffer from hearing loss?
• Do/did you work in any environments that exposed you to very loud sounds either once or over a long period?
• Do/did you engage in recreational activities that exposed you to very loud sounds either once or over a long period?
• Do/did you take medications known to be potentially harmful to your hearing?
• Have you been diagnosed with a heart or circulatory ailment, diabetes, or thyroid condition?
• Have you ever been surprised to find a police car, fire engine, or ambulance had come up right behind you while driving before you heard their siren?
• Do you find you are not being invited out as often by friends or over to family members’ homes?
• Do you find people around you reacting to sounds (dog barking, children laughing, birds singing) that you just don’t hear?

An Audiologist is a trained health care professional who is able to identify, diagnose, treat and monitor disorders of hearing and balance. An Audiologist is usually a graduate with a four year degree. An Audiologist is able to dispense hearing aids, recommend further testing if needed, counsel families, diagnose a hearing loss in infants and adults and to teach coping and compensations skills for hearing aid users and their families.